1 00:00:07,760 --> 00:00:11,560 Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to Playing Dirty Sports Scandals. I'm your host, 2 00:00:11,640 --> 00:00:14,520 Speaker 1: Jay Harris. I've had over twenty years of experience as 3 00:00:14,520 --> 00:00:17,720 Speaker 1: a journalist and sportscaster, hosting a variety of the Espean 4 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,800 Speaker 1: shows from Sports Center to Outside the Lines. But I'm 5 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:23,360 Speaker 1: also a barista on this show because I'm all about 6 00:00:23,400 --> 00:00:27,000 Speaker 1: squeeze and juice from the greatest scandals involving sports that is. 7 00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 1: Playing Dirty is the podcast where you're guaranteed to get 8 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:33,760 Speaker 1: the inside scoop about scandalous fumbles that have taken some 9 00:00:33,840 --> 00:00:49,960 Speaker 1: of the greatest athletes all the way down. Ah now, 10 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: I'm ready. Today's episode delves into a controversy that transcends sports, 11 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:58,600 Speaker 1: pulling politics heavily into play. Because you see, it's about 12 00:00:58,600 --> 00:01:01,640 Speaker 1: a National Football League player who did everything right on 13 00:01:01,800 --> 00:01:04,360 Speaker 1: the field, but got caught up in a crushing headlock 14 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:07,800 Speaker 1: off the field where a terrible teenage decision collided with 15 00:01:07,959 --> 00:01:11,480 Speaker 1: dubious due process. Have a napkin on deck, because this 16 00:01:11,520 --> 00:01:13,920 Speaker 1: scandal is going to make your eyes water and your 17 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:26,000 Speaker 1: jaw drop. This story starts in Rome, Georgia, although a 18 00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:29,120 Speaker 1: lot less busy than its Italian counterpart, with a population 19 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:32,920 Speaker 1: of only around thirty seven thousand people. The Roman Georgia 20 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 1: has some bragging rights in its symphony orchestra, which is 21 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:39,200 Speaker 1: the oldest one in the Southern United States, and its 22 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:43,319 Speaker 1: quaint clock tower. It's rich and natural beauty nestled in 23 00:01:43,360 --> 00:01:46,759 Speaker 1: the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, but given its history 24 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:51,360 Speaker 1: as a Southern US state, racial tension does exist. Keeping 25 00:01:51,440 --> 00:01:54,520 Speaker 1: in mind the racial disparity throughout history in this small, 26 00:01:54,600 --> 00:01:58,520 Speaker 1: scenic town, you can probably imagine one particular school there, 27 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:01,840 Speaker 1: Pepproll High School, back in the early two thousands, and 28 00:02:01,920 --> 00:02:04,680 Speaker 1: the types of challenges that a black student at Pepperrell, 29 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 1: a young man named Marcus Dixon, might have had. It 30 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:11,480 Speaker 1: wasn't like Marcus Dixon was any stranger to hardship before 31 00:02:11,480 --> 00:02:14,520 Speaker 1: his high school experience at pepperl He had a difficult 32 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:18,400 Speaker 1: childhood from the start. His biological mother, Glinda Loyle, is 33 00:02:18,400 --> 00:02:21,079 Speaker 1: alleged to have been a fifteen year old drug addicted 34 00:02:21,160 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 1: prostitute at the time of Marcus's birth on September sixteenth, 35 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:27,359 Speaker 1: nineteen eighty four. She didn't have the tools to take 36 00:02:27,400 --> 00:02:31,040 Speaker 1: care of herself, let alone him, and Marcus's biological father, 37 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:33,880 Speaker 1: Craig Hawkins, was never in the picture. Supposedly calling his 38 00:02:33,960 --> 00:02:37,760 Speaker 1: son a mistake before vanishing for Marcus's life, so, like 39 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:40,280 Speaker 1: approximately ten percent of kids in the state of Georgia, 40 00:02:40,400 --> 00:02:43,520 Speaker 1: Marcus started out life being raised by a grandparent, in 41 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:47,919 Speaker 1: his case, his maternal grandmother, with an elderly caregiver who 42 00:02:47,960 --> 00:02:51,320 Speaker 1: was not totally enthusiastic about stepping up. Marcus had to 43 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:54,119 Speaker 1: be self motivated and worked doubly hard from a young 44 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:57,560 Speaker 1: age to find a purposeful path forward for himself, and 45 00:02:57,639 --> 00:03:01,240 Speaker 1: he did. Marcus figured out real thing, asked what social 46 00:03:01,440 --> 00:03:05,200 Speaker 1: entrepreneurs Steven C. Hogan famously equipped as an adult, you 47 00:03:05,280 --> 00:03:08,160 Speaker 1: can't have a million dollar dream with a minimum wage 48 00:03:08,200 --> 00:03:11,400 Speaker 1: work ethic. So Marcus gave his million dollar dream to 49 00:03:11,560 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: be somebody his all. No matter the school subject, no 50 00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:20,720 Speaker 1: matter the sport, Marcus was unstoppable. His incredible tenacity paid off. 51 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:23,880 Speaker 1: When Marcus was nine years old, a little league coach 52 00:03:23,919 --> 00:03:26,640 Speaker 1: of his name, Ken Jones, who also worked as the 53 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:30,160 Speaker 1: maintenance manager at Pepperrell High School, noticed that this kid 54 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:33,640 Speaker 1: was really something special. Ken saw more than just an 55 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:36,280 Speaker 1: aspiring athlete on the field. When Marcus stepped up to 56 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:38,720 Speaker 1: the little league plate, he saw a young boy with 57 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:42,600 Speaker 1: an undeniable thirst for a better life, so he decided 58 00:03:42,640 --> 00:03:46,880 Speaker 1: to be more than Marcus's coach. Ken became an advocate 59 00:03:46,920 --> 00:03:50,280 Speaker 1: for Marcus, bringing his wife, an elementary school teacher named 60 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:54,080 Speaker 1: Perry Jones, into the fold and together nurturing one of 61 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:57,520 Speaker 1: the hardest working, most gifted kids either of them had 62 00:03:57,560 --> 00:04:01,120 Speaker 1: ever come across. In order to better support Marcus and 63 00:04:01,160 --> 00:04:05,120 Speaker 1: alleviate the pressure of child rearing on Marcus's grandmother, Ken 64 00:04:05,160 --> 00:04:07,840 Speaker 1: and Perry Jones invited Marcus to spend time living in 65 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:12,200 Speaker 1: their home alongside their own biological son, Casey. This turned 66 00:04:12,200 --> 00:04:15,760 Speaker 1: out to be a transformative experience for Marcus, who enjoyed 67 00:04:15,800 --> 00:04:18,440 Speaker 1: the security of living with the Jones family so much 68 00:04:19,040 --> 00:04:22,680 Speaker 1: he decided to make a life changing request. At just 69 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:25,640 Speaker 1: age twelve, He asked Ken and Perry Jones if he 70 00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:28,880 Speaker 1: could move in with them permanently. It just felt right. 71 00:04:29,400 --> 00:04:31,920 Speaker 1: When they agreed and sealed the deal by pursuing a 72 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:35,919 Speaker 1: formal adoption, it forever changed Marcus's life for the better. 73 00:04:36,760 --> 00:04:40,080 Speaker 1: Years later, looking back on his adoption, Marcus said, I 74 00:04:40,120 --> 00:04:43,240 Speaker 1: have the strongest parents on earth. They've got my back 75 00:04:43,279 --> 00:04:47,599 Speaker 1: one hundred ten percent, and Ken and Perry Jones certainly did, 76 00:04:48,440 --> 00:04:51,440 Speaker 1: proving their parental commitment to Marcus by welcoming him into 77 00:04:51,520 --> 00:04:55,159 Speaker 1: their family and always standing by him through the extreme 78 00:04:55,279 --> 00:04:58,520 Speaker 1: ups and downs that were to come. With his grandmother's blessing, 79 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:02,120 Speaker 1: Marcus became families, said Ken Jones, he never gave us 80 00:05:02,120 --> 00:05:05,120 Speaker 1: a lick of trouble, and while twelve year old Marcus 81 00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:08,039 Speaker 1: certainly may not in and of himself have given his 82 00:05:08,120 --> 00:05:11,640 Speaker 1: adoptive parents any trouble, his addition to the Jones family 83 00:05:11,839 --> 00:05:15,600 Speaker 1: certainly invited it. After all, the Jones family was white 84 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:19,440 Speaker 1: and Marcus was black. Ken Jones' mother was so against 85 00:05:19,520 --> 00:05:22,279 Speaker 1: the adoption that she moved out of the family's home, 86 00:05:22,760 --> 00:05:25,760 Speaker 1: and Ken stopped speaking to his brother, who, according to 87 00:05:25,800 --> 00:05:29,760 Speaker 1: the La Times, didn't approve of racial mixing and refused 88 00:05:29,760 --> 00:05:33,919 Speaker 1: to accept Marcus's family. Ken and Perry Jones' sacrifice and 89 00:05:33,960 --> 00:05:37,039 Speaker 1: commitment to Marcus Dixon's well being marked the beginning of 90 00:05:37,080 --> 00:05:42,040 Speaker 1: a unique family dynamic. In contrast to his difficult beginnings 91 00:05:42,040 --> 00:05:46,520 Speaker 1: with absent parents, the Joneses provided Marcus with stability, guidance, 92 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:51,600 Speaker 1: and unconditional love. Marcus's adoptive father, Ken, also happened to 93 00:05:51,600 --> 00:05:55,320 Speaker 1: have a great eye for athletics. Despite coaching little league himself. 94 00:05:55,760 --> 00:05:58,560 Speaker 1: Ken urged his six foot six inch tall son to 95 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: put baseball on the back and focus on football. Early 96 00:06:02,839 --> 00:06:05,040 Speaker 1: on in this pivot, it was clear that Ken had 97 00:06:05,080 --> 00:06:10,240 Speaker 1: unlocked a powerhouse with his recommendation. Marcus Dixon was not 98 00:06:10,279 --> 00:06:12,880 Speaker 1: your run of the mill high school football star. He 99 00:06:13,000 --> 00:06:15,480 Speaker 1: was a talent the likes of which Pepperoll High School 100 00:06:15,480 --> 00:06:18,560 Speaker 1: hadn't seen since Randy Johnson went on to play for 101 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:21,840 Speaker 1: the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks, who was 102 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:24,680 Speaker 1: a student there in the early nineteen seventies. In his 103 00:06:24,800 --> 00:06:28,040 Speaker 1: junior year at Pepperow, Marcus Dixon carved his name into 104 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:32,679 Speaker 1: the football field like a maestro conducting Rome's famous symphony orchestra, 105 00:06:33,200 --> 00:06:38,400 Speaker 1: leaving offenses absolutely bewildered. Picture this a draw, dropping ninety 106 00:06:38,440 --> 00:06:42,480 Speaker 1: eight tackles, twelve for a loss, three sacks, and seven 107 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:47,360 Speaker 1: passes defended. Whoa football wasn't just a game for Marcus Dixon. 108 00:06:47,839 --> 00:06:51,040 Speaker 1: Watching this seventeen year old play was bearing witness to 109 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:55,000 Speaker 1: history in the making. Through his focus, raw skill and 110 00:06:55,080 --> 00:06:58,880 Speaker 1: work ethic, Marcus elevated football to an art form. His 111 00:06:58,960 --> 00:07:01,120 Speaker 1: performance on the grid eye iron required the kind of 112 00:07:01,120 --> 00:07:05,240 Speaker 1: physical and mental toughness most of us will probably never understand, 113 00:07:05,560 --> 00:07:07,839 Speaker 1: and which most of us will probably never need on 114 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:12,320 Speaker 1: tap in quite the same way Marcus ultimately did. Despite 115 00:07:12,360 --> 00:07:15,360 Speaker 1: now having a loving family and establishing himself as a 116 00:07:15,360 --> 00:07:19,080 Speaker 1: football standout, Marcus's senior year in high school was far 117 00:07:19,120 --> 00:07:23,360 Speaker 1: from just highlight reels suitable for ESPN. The first shadow 118 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:26,480 Speaker 1: loomed over his promising career as he faced an unexpected 119 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:30,480 Speaker 1: adversary a chipped bone in his left knee that means 120 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:33,000 Speaker 1: that a fragment of bone came loose and was floating 121 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:36,200 Speaker 1: around in the knee joint. Bone Chips in the knee 122 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:39,880 Speaker 1: are very painful, and given that this injury struck right 123 00:07:39,920 --> 00:07:42,640 Speaker 1: as scouts route looking at high school football players for 124 00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:47,920 Speaker 1: college opportunities, Marcus's sports future was at risk. But Marcus Dixon, 125 00:07:47,960 --> 00:07:51,640 Speaker 1: whose background had demanded resilience, wasn't about to bow down 126 00:07:51,680 --> 00:07:54,960 Speaker 1: to adversity. He had so much to fight for now. 127 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:59,080 Speaker 1: Football wasn't just his dream anymore, after all, but his families. 128 00:08:00,360 --> 00:08:03,360 Speaker 1: So Marcus charged onto the field for the season football 129 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:06,840 Speaker 1: opener his senior year, battling through the pain in his knee. 130 00:08:07,480 --> 00:08:10,240 Speaker 1: As the season rolled on, it became clear that Marcus 131 00:08:10,280 --> 00:08:13,320 Speaker 1: couldn't sustain his level of play. Through sheer will power 132 00:08:13,640 --> 00:08:16,360 Speaker 1: and a pushing through the pain approach. Alone, he took 133 00:08:16,360 --> 00:08:19,080 Speaker 1: the plunge and went under the knife. He knew he 134 00:08:19,120 --> 00:08:22,239 Speaker 1: would be temporarily benched, but Marcus figured he could recover 135 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:25,880 Speaker 1: quickly and give back to football. Besides, just because he 136 00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:28,880 Speaker 1: was taking a little time out to heal, Marcus knew 137 00:08:28,960 --> 00:08:32,800 Speaker 1: he was still likely to attract college scouts attention. He 138 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:36,840 Speaker 1: was an educated gamble, after all. Unlike many athletes, Marcus 139 00:08:36,840 --> 00:08:40,600 Speaker 1: had pushed himself in all areas of his life, driven 140 00:08:40,640 --> 00:08:43,440 Speaker 1: by need. He was a grade A student with a 141 00:08:43,480 --> 00:08:46,599 Speaker 1: three point nine six grade point average, making Marcus a 142 00:08:46,679 --> 00:08:50,320 Speaker 1: standout not only in football, but also in the classroom. 143 00:08:50,559 --> 00:08:55,240 Speaker 1: His double whammy credentials academic and sports excellence attracted the 144 00:08:55,280 --> 00:08:59,800 Speaker 1: attention of several prestigious universities, with scholarship offers pouring in 145 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:04,120 Speaker 1: for the likes of Alabama, Georgia, and Auburn, but Marcus 146 00:09:04,120 --> 00:09:08,680 Speaker 1: opted for Vanderbilt University, earning himself a full scholarship and 147 00:09:08,720 --> 00:09:11,960 Speaker 1: an opportunity to play for the Vanderbilt Commodore's football team. 148 00:09:12,520 --> 00:09:15,960 Speaker 1: Vanderbilt a private university founded in eighteen seventy three in 149 00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:18,920 Speaker 1: the heart of Nashville, Tennessee, is a campus from which 150 00:09:18,960 --> 00:09:22,400 Speaker 1: pro sports careers and lucrative professions and many disciplines have 151 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:25,960 Speaker 1: been launched. Jay Cutler, Bill Wade, and Casey Hayward are 152 00:09:26,040 --> 00:09:28,960 Speaker 1: just a few Vanderbilt University alumni to make it in 153 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:32,280 Speaker 1: the NFL. So it says a lot about Marcus's talent 154 00:09:32,400 --> 00:09:35,520 Speaker 1: that despite losing some of his crucial senior high school 155 00:09:35,520 --> 00:09:39,520 Speaker 1: season at Pepperrell to injury, the Vanderbilt commodore stood steadfast 156 00:09:39,559 --> 00:09:42,360 Speaker 1: by their scholarship commitment to him. He was a great 157 00:09:42,440 --> 00:09:45,760 Speaker 1: bet for them both on and off the field. In fact, 158 00:09:45,880 --> 00:09:48,880 Speaker 1: Marcus was one of then knew Vanderbilt head coach Bobby 159 00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:53,040 Speaker 1: Johnson's most heralded commitments in his first full recruiting class. 160 00:09:53,240 --> 00:10:00,120 Speaker 1: But his life often demonstrates fate can pivot fast. Just 161 00:10:00,160 --> 00:10:02,520 Speaker 1: as Marcus stood on the precipice of a new chapter 162 00:10:02,559 --> 00:10:07,280 Speaker 1: at Vanderbilt, his life took a dark detour to set 163 00:10:07,280 --> 00:10:10,440 Speaker 1: the stage of Marcus's fall from grace Let's first address 164 00:10:10,520 --> 00:10:13,280 Speaker 1: how well he was thriving in Prepperoll High School, where 165 00:10:13,320 --> 00:10:16,480 Speaker 1: only six percent of students are black. Well. One thing 166 00:10:16,480 --> 00:10:20,679 Speaker 1: about football is that, as with many sports, individual athleticism 167 00:10:20,720 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: has demonstrated an ability to transcend racial prejudice temporarily and 168 00:10:26,080 --> 00:10:29,720 Speaker 1: to a degree. Fans are colorblind just as long as 169 00:10:29,760 --> 00:10:32,520 Speaker 1: an athlete is winning for their team, just as long 170 00:10:32,559 --> 00:10:36,520 Speaker 1: as the player's accomplishments are supporting the community's overriding objective 171 00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:39,480 Speaker 1: to be number one on the field. But the moment 172 00:10:39,559 --> 00:10:42,240 Speaker 1: a black athlete isn't perceived to be an asset on 173 00:10:42,559 --> 00:10:46,200 Speaker 1: or off the gridiron, well, that's quite another matter. And 174 00:10:46,280 --> 00:10:49,000 Speaker 1: of course this isn't just the case at Pepperrell High 175 00:10:49,040 --> 00:10:53,120 Speaker 1: School in Georgia. Did you know that the National Football 176 00:10:53,160 --> 00:10:55,520 Speaker 1: League didn't announce that it would discontinue the use of 177 00:10:55,640 --> 00:10:58,440 Speaker 1: race norming, which is the practice of assuming a lower 178 00:10:58,480 --> 00:11:02,679 Speaker 1: baseline of cognitive abilities in black players in legal settlements 179 00:11:02,679 --> 00:11:07,440 Speaker 1: for concussion related injuries, until June second, twenty twenty one. 180 00:11:07,640 --> 00:11:10,160 Speaker 1: It took into twenty twenty one for the NFL to 181 00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:13,240 Speaker 1: denounce their long held belief that race is a binary 182 00:11:13,559 --> 00:11:17,640 Speaker 1: biological concept that states differences in black bodies and minds 183 00:11:17,679 --> 00:11:24,160 Speaker 1: are not only existent, but quantifiable. What scientific American reiterated 184 00:11:24,200 --> 00:11:27,559 Speaker 1: strongly that the NFL had been scientifically wrong on all 185 00:11:27,559 --> 00:11:30,680 Speaker 1: accounts over the years, and published its statement that race 186 00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:34,679 Speaker 1: norming is an inherently anti black form of scientific racism 187 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:39,720 Speaker 1: that is evidence of slavery's afterlife. Ironically, more than seventy 188 00:11:39,760 --> 00:11:43,760 Speaker 1: percent of the NFL's labor force on the gridiron is black, Whereas, 189 00:11:43,840 --> 00:11:48,040 Speaker 1: according to Statista as recently as August twenty twenty three, 190 00:11:48,080 --> 00:11:50,959 Speaker 1: half of all football fans between eighteen and twenty nine 191 00:11:51,040 --> 00:11:54,160 Speaker 1: years old and sixty five percent of all football fans 192 00:11:54,200 --> 00:11:57,400 Speaker 1: over the age of thirty are white. So white fans 193 00:11:57,440 --> 00:12:01,760 Speaker 1: are overwhelmingly cheering on black players despite proven endemic racism 194 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:05,600 Speaker 1: within this sport of football. Forbes, Richard mcgahey summed up 195 00:12:05,640 --> 00:12:09,439 Speaker 1: this bizarre tenuous relationship between football players and fans, clearly 196 00:12:09,520 --> 00:12:14,480 Speaker 1: saying sporting success and exemplary individual performances by black people 197 00:12:14,920 --> 00:12:20,280 Speaker 1: can't solve structurally embedded racial discrimination. And mcgahey's right. For 198 00:12:20,320 --> 00:12:22,960 Speaker 1: as long as Marcus was bolstering Preparrell High School's winning 199 00:12:23,040 --> 00:12:26,079 Speaker 1: record and giving Floyd County School District and Georgia as 200 00:12:26,080 --> 00:12:29,320 Speaker 1: a whole bragging rights, well his skin color could be 201 00:12:29,400 --> 00:12:32,400 Speaker 1: largely overlooked, just as long as it didn't cross any 202 00:12:32,480 --> 00:12:37,760 Speaker 1: major lines. Of course, So what exactly were those lines? Well, 203 00:12:38,160 --> 00:12:41,240 Speaker 1: remember how members of Ken and Perry Jones family refused 204 00:12:41,240 --> 00:12:44,760 Speaker 1: to accept Marcus and broke ties over his adoption. In 205 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:48,120 Speaker 1: addition to white parents adopting a black child, another practice 206 00:12:48,120 --> 00:12:50,800 Speaker 1: that many people would not accept in Georgia and in 207 00:12:50,840 --> 00:12:52,960 Speaker 1: many US states for that matter, in the early two 208 00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:57,560 Speaker 1: thousands was interracial dating and marriage. In fact, many mixed 209 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:01,640 Speaker 1: race couples still face backlash ev today. I have not 210 00:13:01,720 --> 00:13:04,760 Speaker 1: yet counseled an interracial wedding where someone didn't have a 211 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:07,760 Speaker 1: problem on the bride or the groom's side, the Reverend 212 00:13:07,840 --> 00:13:11,720 Speaker 1: Kimberly D Lucas said when asked about her experiences. I 213 00:13:11,720 --> 00:13:14,400 Speaker 1: think for a lot of people, interracial relationships are okay 214 00:13:14,480 --> 00:13:17,520 Speaker 1: if it's out there and it's other people, but when 215 00:13:17,520 --> 00:13:20,120 Speaker 1: it comes home, it's something that forces them to confront 216 00:13:20,160 --> 00:13:23,920 Speaker 1: their own internal demons and their own prejudices and assumptions. 217 00:13:24,280 --> 00:13:28,280 Speaker 1: It's still really hard for people. Reverend Kimberly D Lucas's 218 00:13:28,280 --> 00:13:31,600 Speaker 1: assessment jives with statements from people who were actually at 219 00:13:31,640 --> 00:13:36,160 Speaker 1: Pepperrell High School with Marcus Dixon. For example, Josh Pilgrim, 220 00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:39,000 Speaker 1: who played sports with Marcus for years, said that while 221 00:13:39,040 --> 00:13:42,600 Speaker 1: Marcus's race wasn't exactly an issue at Pepperrell, there were 222 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:47,199 Speaker 1: definitely limits to what was considered acceptable. Josh said that 223 00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:50,840 Speaker 1: most local people disliked the idea of interracial dating and marriage, 224 00:13:51,120 --> 00:13:55,680 Speaker 1: including himself, but Marcus said that interracial relationships developed anyway 225 00:13:55,679 --> 00:13:58,880 Speaker 1: at Pepperrell. The girls' parents didn't accept the fact that 226 00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:00,640 Speaker 1: they were hanging out with a black guy, he told 227 00:14:00,640 --> 00:14:03,800 Speaker 1: reporter Ellen Barry. So the girls would tell him, you 228 00:14:03,880 --> 00:14:06,240 Speaker 1: can't call, but we can talk on the computer. 229 00:14:07,559 --> 00:14:19,119 Speaker 2: Wow. 230 00:14:20,680 --> 00:14:23,080 Speaker 1: Now, a lot of this background information that I've shared 231 00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:26,200 Speaker 1: is difficult to swallow. But now that I have shared it, 232 00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:28,520 Speaker 1: you have a taste for the environment in which this 233 00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:32,040 Speaker 1: tragic scandal brewed. Let's start with the fact that everyone 234 00:14:32,080 --> 00:14:34,920 Speaker 1: can agree on. On February tenth, two thousand and three, 235 00:14:35,360 --> 00:14:38,320 Speaker 1: Marcus Dixon had sex with a fellow student named Christy 236 00:14:38,400 --> 00:14:41,320 Speaker 1: Brown in a school trailer. You know a little bit 237 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:45,120 Speaker 1: about Marcus already, So who was Christy or Christy was 238 00:14:45,160 --> 00:14:47,680 Speaker 1: a fifteen year old white sophomore who was three months 239 00:14:47,720 --> 00:14:51,600 Speaker 1: shy of her sixteenth birthday. By all accounts, she was industrious, 240 00:14:51,720 --> 00:14:55,480 Speaker 1: much like Marcus, working after school cleaning classrooms and trailers 241 00:14:55,480 --> 00:14:58,560 Speaker 1: to help earn extra money. And Christy was a virgin 242 00:14:59,040 --> 00:15:02,520 Speaker 1: until her sexually counter with Marcus. Now, before we dive 243 00:15:02,560 --> 00:15:05,880 Speaker 1: into what went now with Marcus and Christie specifically, let's 244 00:15:05,880 --> 00:15:09,560 Speaker 1: take a look at the wider facts around teenage sex. First, 245 00:15:09,560 --> 00:15:12,840 Speaker 1: there's the age of consent. The age of consent is 246 00:15:12,880 --> 00:15:14,720 Speaker 1: the age of which a person is considered to be 247 00:15:14,840 --> 00:15:19,080 Speaker 1: legally competent to consent to sexual acts. What this means 248 00:15:19,200 --> 00:15:21,760 Speaker 1: is that an adult who engages in sexual activity with 249 00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:24,040 Speaker 1: a person who was younger than the age of consent 250 00:15:24,680 --> 00:15:29,040 Speaker 1: is unable to claim that the sexual activity was consensual period. 251 00:15:29,520 --> 00:15:31,960 Speaker 1: The person below the minimum age is considered to be 252 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:35,200 Speaker 1: a victim and their sex partner is therefore classified as 253 00:15:35,240 --> 00:15:40,200 Speaker 1: an offender. Although some jurisdictions provide exceptions through Romeo and 254 00:15:40,280 --> 00:15:43,640 Speaker 1: Juliet laws if both of the participants are under age 255 00:15:43,720 --> 00:15:47,800 Speaker 1: are close in age, there is no universal age of consent. 256 00:15:48,600 --> 00:15:52,080 Speaker 1: Age of consent laws vary widely from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. 257 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:55,880 Speaker 1: What you need to know for this Playing Dirty scandal 258 00:15:56,280 --> 00:15:57,960 Speaker 1: is that the age of consent in the state of 259 00:15:57,960 --> 00:16:03,720 Speaker 1: Georgia is sixteen. There are a number of states, including Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, 260 00:16:04,120 --> 00:16:08,520 Speaker 1: North Carolina, New Jersey, Maryland, and Maine. Have lower ages 261 00:16:08,560 --> 00:16:12,800 Speaker 1: of consent between thirteen and fifteen years of age. Now 262 00:16:12,840 --> 00:16:15,080 Speaker 1: here's the other thing about age of consent laws, and 263 00:16:15,120 --> 00:16:17,880 Speaker 1: really laws in general. While they're certainly meant to apply 264 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:22,440 Speaker 1: to everyone equally, it's an unfortunate reality that teenagers are 265 00:16:22,680 --> 00:16:25,880 Speaker 1: on the whole just not as interested in learning about 266 00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:29,640 Speaker 1: laws as they are interested in learning about sex. As 267 00:16:29,720 --> 00:16:33,840 Speaker 1: British novelist Honor Tracy said, a student undergoing a word 268 00:16:33,840 --> 00:16:36,880 Speaker 1: association test was asked why a snowstorm put him in 269 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:42,760 Speaker 1: mind of sex, He replied frankly, because everything does. So 270 00:16:43,120 --> 00:16:45,400 Speaker 1: despite the age of consent law in Georgia being said 271 00:16:45,400 --> 00:16:49,360 Speaker 1: at sixteen, many teenagers under the age of sixteen are 272 00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:53,640 Speaker 1: having sex regardless without giving the law a moment's thought. 273 00:16:54,480 --> 00:16:58,200 Speaker 1: According to Psychology Today, about thirteen percent of teens then 274 00:16:58,280 --> 00:17:00,480 Speaker 1: the United States have had sex before oh, they turned 275 00:17:00,520 --> 00:17:03,720 Speaker 1: fifteen years old, and this is actually down from about 276 00:17:03,760 --> 00:17:07,560 Speaker 1: twenty percent in nineteen ninety five. Anyone listening to this 277 00:17:07,600 --> 00:17:11,360 Speaker 1: podcast who as a teenage kid, probably shudders hearing these stats. 278 00:17:11,920 --> 00:17:14,800 Speaker 1: But deep down where you bury all the facts you've 279 00:17:14,800 --> 00:17:17,600 Speaker 1: heard and really wish you didn't know like that, more 280 00:17:17,640 --> 00:17:21,040 Speaker 1: people die from chiropractors than sharks, and that most laugh 281 00:17:21,119 --> 00:17:24,080 Speaker 1: tracks are recorded by people who are now dead. You're 282 00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:28,240 Speaker 1: probably honestly not surprised. It's just not breaking news that 283 00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:31,560 Speaker 1: teenagers are interested in and engaging in sex for anyone 284 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:35,359 Speaker 1: who has ever been or met a teenager. What was 285 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:38,159 Speaker 1: breaking news on February twelfth, two thousand and three, in 286 00:17:38,280 --> 00:17:41,240 Speaker 1: Georgia and the United States at large, however, was at 287 00:17:41,280 --> 00:17:44,639 Speaker 1: white fifteen year old sophomore Christy Brown accused the black 288 00:17:44,720 --> 00:17:48,960 Speaker 1: eighteen year old senior, Marcus Dixon of rape. The details 289 00:17:48,960 --> 00:17:51,600 Speaker 1: of what happened between Marcus and Christie on February ten, 290 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:55,280 Speaker 1: two thousand and three are unsettling and involve two very 291 00:17:55,520 --> 00:17:59,520 Speaker 1: different polarizing stories. Christy said that Marcus tracked her down 292 00:17:59,560 --> 00:18:01,840 Speaker 1: in a class restroom trailer that she was cleaning as 293 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:04,679 Speaker 1: part of her duties in an after school job, asked 294 00:18:04,720 --> 00:18:08,719 Speaker 1: if she was a virgin, grabbed her arms, unbuttoned her pants, 295 00:18:09,119 --> 00:18:15,720 Speaker 1: and raped her on the table. This is a horrendous allegation. 296 00:18:15,840 --> 00:18:20,520 Speaker 1: In the aftermath of Christy Brown's statement was swift and severe. Marcus, 297 00:18:20,560 --> 00:18:23,399 Speaker 1: the star football player, the top senior student on the 298 00:18:23,400 --> 00:18:26,680 Speaker 1: brink of graduation, was called to the principal's office, where 299 00:18:26,720 --> 00:18:31,320 Speaker 1: police immediately handcuffed him. As the school day ended, Marcus 300 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:33,280 Speaker 1: was purp walked out in the midst of a sea 301 00:18:33,320 --> 00:18:37,480 Speaker 1: of faces, a spectacle for everyone to see. Years later, 302 00:18:37,560 --> 00:18:41,399 Speaker 1: Marcus recounted this surreal moment, saying, they handcuffed me in 303 00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:44,520 Speaker 1: the principal's office and school had just let out, and 304 00:18:44,560 --> 00:18:47,119 Speaker 1: so I'm basically walking out as everyone is waiting on 305 00:18:47,160 --> 00:18:51,440 Speaker 1: the bus. I was terrified. The gravity of the situation 306 00:18:51,560 --> 00:18:55,680 Speaker 1: became increasingly clear as multiple charges were levied against Marcus, 307 00:18:56,040 --> 00:19:00,879 Speaker 1: assault and battery, rape, statutory rape, and faults imprisonment. Instead 308 00:19:00,920 --> 00:19:03,160 Speaker 1: of planning what dorm he'd live in and whether he'd 309 00:19:03,160 --> 00:19:06,520 Speaker 1: have a car at Vanderbilt, Marcus was now ensnared in 310 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:11,560 Speaker 1: a complex battle on unfamiliar turf the court room, The 311 00:19:11,680 --> 00:19:14,640 Speaker 1: case moved like a rocket in the beginning, Christy said 312 00:19:14,640 --> 00:19:17,600 Speaker 1: the rape happened in February two thousand and three. A 313 00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:20,560 Speaker 1: grand jury indicted Marcus the very next month. In March 314 00:19:20,560 --> 00:19:23,840 Speaker 1: two thousand and three, Marcus decided to fight the charges. 315 00:19:24,240 --> 00:19:27,240 Speaker 1: His adoptive parents, Ken and Perry Jones stepped all the 316 00:19:27,280 --> 00:19:32,000 Speaker 1: way up, spending their life savings on Marcus's defense. Perry steadfast, 317 00:19:32,040 --> 00:19:34,360 Speaker 1: They told the press that Marcus would never hurt a fly. 318 00:19:35,040 --> 00:19:37,720 Speaker 1: He may have committed a sin, but he never committed 319 00:19:37,720 --> 00:19:41,000 Speaker 1: a crime, and so with a support of his parents. 320 00:19:41,200 --> 00:19:45,040 Speaker 1: By May two thousand and three, Marcus Dixon was on trial. 321 00:19:46,280 --> 00:19:49,760 Speaker 1: David Balzer, an attorney for the prominent Atlanta law firm McKenna, 322 00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:53,760 Speaker 1: Long and Aldridge, defended Marcus Dixon against the prosecution for 323 00:19:53,920 --> 00:19:57,560 Speaker 1: decreased rates after reading a newspaper account of the allegations 324 00:19:57,600 --> 00:20:00,960 Speaker 1: and meeting the Jones family. This should be pursuing his 325 00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:04,600 Speaker 1: education instead of sitting in jail, David Ballser exclaimed, and 326 00:20:04,640 --> 00:20:06,919 Speaker 1: there were many members of the community in Georgia and 327 00:20:06,960 --> 00:20:09,840 Speaker 1: at large who agreed with him. In fact, The New 328 00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:12,680 Speaker 1: York Times reported that on the eve of Marcus Dixon's 329 00:20:12,720 --> 00:20:16,200 Speaker 1: hearing that nearly one hundred people gathered outside the State 330 00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:21,480 Speaker 1: Supreme Court, holding candles and singing we shall overcome. Doctor 331 00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:24,800 Speaker 1: Joseph Lowry, a founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, 332 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:28,119 Speaker 1: addressed the crowd at this gathering, emotionally voicing one of 333 00:20:28,119 --> 00:20:30,720 Speaker 1: the cruxes of the case. If the young lady was 334 00:20:30,720 --> 00:20:33,760 Speaker 1: black and Marcus Dixon was white, I don't think we 335 00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:38,040 Speaker 1: would be here. Was he right, right or wrong. Defense 336 00:20:38,080 --> 00:20:42,080 Speaker 1: attorney David Baser leaned into this assertion, making Marcus Dixon's 337 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:45,159 Speaker 1: case a symbol of the broader dynamics of justice and 338 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,199 Speaker 1: highlighting the biases that still exists when you have a 339 00:20:48,200 --> 00:20:50,720 Speaker 1: young black man and a young white girl involved in 340 00:20:50,760 --> 00:20:56,520 Speaker 1: allegations of rape and violence. The case, intertwined with reputations, allegiances, 341 00:20:56,520 --> 00:21:00,359 Speaker 1: and preconceived notions, turned the courtroom into a microcop of 342 00:21:00,400 --> 00:21:04,840 Speaker 1: a community grappling with the issues of race, bias, and sex. 343 00:21:05,800 --> 00:21:09,400 Speaker 1: Keen Legal observers speculated that Marcus Dixon's case could prove 344 00:21:09,480 --> 00:21:13,320 Speaker 1: as momentous as the Rodney King, Abner Lowima, or oj 345 00:21:13,440 --> 00:21:17,399 Speaker 1: Simpson cases. This is the next significant one, regardless of 346 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:20,639 Speaker 1: how it plays out, said Mark Mauer, assistant director of 347 00:21:20,640 --> 00:21:25,040 Speaker 1: the Sentencing Project, a Washington, d c. Nonprofit organization that 348 00:21:25,160 --> 00:21:28,920 Speaker 1: monitors racial disparities and sentencing is not just an event 349 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:32,280 Speaker 1: that took place between two people, but very much symbolic 350 00:21:32,359 --> 00:21:34,840 Speaker 1: of how race has played out in the criminal justice 351 00:21:34,840 --> 00:21:39,600 Speaker 1: system for a century. But what about the defendant, Christy 352 00:21:39,680 --> 00:21:43,720 Speaker 1: Brown matters, The Floyd County Prosecutor John McClellan argued, and 353 00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:47,040 Speaker 1: he was, of course totally right. About this. A fifteen 354 00:21:47,119 --> 00:21:49,280 Speaker 1: year old girl stepping up with a rape claim is 355 00:21:49,400 --> 00:21:53,399 Speaker 1: no small decision, after all, regardless of anyone's skin color. 356 00:21:53,800 --> 00:21:57,159 Speaker 1: And while racial discrimination and disparity in the United States 357 00:21:57,240 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 1: is an undeniable issue, so too is under based discrimination 358 00:22:01,400 --> 00:22:04,760 Speaker 1: and disparity. As an audience of listeners familiar with the 359 00:22:04,800 --> 00:22:07,520 Speaker 1: post two thousand and six Me Too movement that arose 360 00:22:07,560 --> 00:22:10,520 Speaker 1: in the wake of sexual abuse allegations against Hollywood mogul 361 00:22:10,520 --> 00:22:14,399 Speaker 1: Harvey Weinstein, you likely know that women's rights group's position 362 00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:18,840 Speaker 1: is to understandably be heavily opposed to questioning the accounts 363 00:22:18,840 --> 00:22:22,439 Speaker 1: of women who alleged they were sexually assaulted. But in 364 00:22:22,480 --> 00:22:26,800 Speaker 1: this country, in every single instance, no matter what, we 365 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:30,200 Speaker 1: have the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. 366 00:22:30,720 --> 00:22:34,600 Speaker 1: That means juries can't just believe the allegations brought against 367 00:22:34,600 --> 00:22:39,600 Speaker 1: the defendant, not without proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Marcus 368 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:43,800 Speaker 1: Dixon's trial hinged on one teenager's word against another's. Who 369 00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:48,159 Speaker 1: would the jury believe? According to Christy Brown, she was 370 00:22:48,160 --> 00:22:51,040 Speaker 1: taken by surprise while working as a student custodian after 371 00:22:51,080 --> 00:22:54,480 Speaker 1: school in an on campus trailer being used as a classroom. 372 00:22:54,880 --> 00:22:57,879 Speaker 1: She testified that prior to the assault, she and Marcus 373 00:22:57,920 --> 00:23:00,800 Speaker 1: Dixon barely knew one another, and that she had never 374 00:23:00,840 --> 00:23:03,760 Speaker 1: spoken more than a few words to him. Christy said 375 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:06,439 Speaker 1: she didn't scream or cry out for help because I 376 00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:09,560 Speaker 1: was afraid he'd hurt me. Now, Marcus Dix and fans 377 00:23:09,600 --> 00:23:11,760 Speaker 1: are quick to poke holes in Christie's account, but hear 378 00:23:11,800 --> 00:23:15,200 Speaker 1: me out. Prior to having sex with Marcus, Christy was 379 00:23:15,200 --> 00:23:18,119 Speaker 1: a virgin, and it does appear from third parties that 380 00:23:18,200 --> 00:23:21,080 Speaker 1: prior to having sex on February ten, two thousand and three, 381 00:23:21,520 --> 00:23:24,480 Speaker 1: Christy barely knew Marcus. It's not like they were known 382 00:23:24,560 --> 00:23:27,000 Speaker 1: to other students or teachers as a couple. At Pepperell 383 00:23:27,040 --> 00:23:30,560 Speaker 1: High School, they apparently shared one home economics class, but 384 00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:35,600 Speaker 1: beyond that nothing. Is it likely that Christy would choose 385 00:23:35,640 --> 00:23:38,359 Speaker 1: to lose her virginity in the non romantic setting of 386 00:23:38,400 --> 00:23:41,520 Speaker 1: a deserted classroom trailer that she'd just been cleaning with 387 00:23:41,640 --> 00:23:45,880 Speaker 1: the guy she hardly exchanged hellos with. It's worth thinking about, 388 00:23:46,119 --> 00:23:49,399 Speaker 1: and Marcus's defense team, led by attorney David Balzer, knew 389 00:23:49,640 --> 00:23:53,000 Speaker 1: that Christie's account was worth thinking about and that he 390 00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:55,359 Speaker 1: had his work cut out getting the jury to believe 391 00:23:55,520 --> 00:23:58,840 Speaker 1: and accept the alternative version of events told by Marcus. 392 00:23:59,440 --> 00:24:01,960 Speaker 1: So let's go through Marcus's story of what happened that 393 00:24:02,080 --> 00:24:06,000 Speaker 1: day in the school trailer. Now, in a stark contrast 394 00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:10,840 Speaker 1: to Christie's right claim, Marcus Dixon shared a different consensual account. 395 00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:14,560 Speaker 1: He asserted that the encounter was actually initiated by Christie. 396 00:24:15,080 --> 00:24:17,280 Speaker 1: I said we should go to my house, that there 397 00:24:17,320 --> 00:24:19,760 Speaker 1: was no one there, Marcus said, But she said she 398 00:24:19,840 --> 00:24:22,680 Speaker 1: was afraid someone would see us leaving together. She said 399 00:24:22,680 --> 00:24:24,760 Speaker 1: that her daddy was a racist and that he would 400 00:24:24,840 --> 00:24:26,600 Speaker 1: kill both of us if he knew she was with 401 00:24:26,640 --> 00:24:30,920 Speaker 1: a black man. The whole nation gasped as race again 402 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:34,040 Speaker 1: took the spotlight in the Marcus Dixon trial. But just 403 00:24:34,080 --> 00:24:36,200 Speaker 1: because the crux of the issue was a hot button 404 00:24:36,280 --> 00:24:39,199 Speaker 1: point of justice didn't mean that Marcus was assured an 405 00:24:39,280 --> 00:24:43,040 Speaker 1: empathetic acquittal. You see, the prosecution had a not so 406 00:24:43,200 --> 00:24:47,240 Speaker 1: secret card. While Marcus shined as an athlete, an academic, 407 00:24:47,520 --> 00:24:51,040 Speaker 1: and a son who was adoring adoptive parents, his reputation 408 00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:55,399 Speaker 1: was not untarnished. There were two previous sexual allegations against 409 00:24:55,480 --> 00:24:59,159 Speaker 1: him that were well pretty damn it, and the prosecution 410 00:24:59,320 --> 00:25:02,159 Speaker 1: was allowed to present evidence to the jury of Marcus's 411 00:25:02,160 --> 00:25:08,640 Speaker 1: prior devians. The Atlanta Journal Constitution printed that prosecutors contended 412 00:25:08,720 --> 00:25:12,439 Speaker 1: Marcus Dixon was a sexual predator. They presented evidence that 413 00:25:12,480 --> 00:25:15,320 Speaker 1: the six foot six, two hundred and seventy pound football 414 00:25:15,359 --> 00:25:18,359 Speaker 1: star had been suspended twice from Pepperrell High School for 415 00:25:18,400 --> 00:25:23,080 Speaker 1: sexual activity. Neither case was reported to police, and Dixon 416 00:25:23,119 --> 00:25:26,560 Speaker 1: never was charged with a crime, but jurors were told 417 00:25:26,840 --> 00:25:29,879 Speaker 1: he had been suspended for exposing himself in a classroom 418 00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:33,320 Speaker 1: in two thousand and one and inappropriately touching a fourteen 419 00:25:33,400 --> 00:25:36,040 Speaker 1: year old girl after track practice in two thousand and two. 420 00:25:36,840 --> 00:25:39,960 Speaker 1: These two incidents played a critical role in Prosecutor John 421 00:25:40,000 --> 00:25:44,680 Speaker 1: McClellan's case against Marcus. Without question, they made Marcus look 422 00:25:44,720 --> 00:25:47,960 Speaker 1: more likely to be guilty of raping Christy. The prior 423 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:52,480 Speaker 1: allegations established a pattern of sexual predation, and the prosecution 424 00:25:52,720 --> 00:25:57,320 Speaker 1: didn't just have Marcus's prior sexual misbehavior on display. They 425 00:25:57,359 --> 00:26:00,359 Speaker 1: also had hard evidence that Christy was bruised when she 426 00:26:00,480 --> 00:26:05,320 Speaker 1: was examined two days after the alleged rape. Marcus's defense attorney, 427 00:26:05,359 --> 00:26:08,680 Speaker 1: David Ballser, understood that he had to counter Christie's story 428 00:26:08,720 --> 00:26:12,439 Speaker 1: of a violent attack comprehensively in order to reduce the 429 00:26:12,520 --> 00:26:16,160 Speaker 1: prosecution's hold on the jury, so the defense team called 430 00:26:16,160 --> 00:26:19,560 Speaker 1: three Pepperrell High School classmates to testify, all of whom 431 00:26:19,640 --> 00:26:23,640 Speaker 1: said they had seen Christie's bruises days before her encountered 432 00:26:23,680 --> 00:26:26,560 Speaker 1: with Marcus. Now, this would be key evidence in favor 433 00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:31,040 Speaker 1: of Marcus's innocence if the jury believed it. After all, 434 00:26:31,320 --> 00:26:34,720 Speaker 1: if the visible bruising injuries hadn't been caused by Marcus, 435 00:26:35,280 --> 00:26:38,360 Speaker 1: that would mean Christie's story wasn't true, at least not totally. 436 00:26:38,880 --> 00:26:41,240 Speaker 1: And once the jury believes the witness is lying about 437 00:26:41,280 --> 00:26:44,320 Speaker 1: one thing, they're more likely to believe they are lying 438 00:26:44,359 --> 00:26:48,880 Speaker 1: about everything. But more damning evidence was still coming from 439 00:26:48,880 --> 00:26:53,359 Speaker 1: the prosecution. Medical testimony confirmed that Christy did have bruising 440 00:26:53,440 --> 00:26:56,960 Speaker 1: in a place that wasn't visible, around her vaginal area. 441 00:26:57,720 --> 00:27:01,639 Speaker 1: The defense again countered claim that vaginal bruising was simply 442 00:27:01,680 --> 00:27:06,200 Speaker 1: consistent with first time consensual sex. By this time, the 443 00:27:06,280 --> 00:27:10,000 Speaker 1: jury was confused. Both the defense and the prosecution were 444 00:27:10,119 --> 00:27:13,680 Speaker 1: using the same pieces of evidence to argue directly oppositional 445 00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:17,359 Speaker 1: meanings in Marcus Dixon's trial, But the defense had a 446 00:27:17,440 --> 00:27:21,120 Speaker 1: key witness, The Clincher. Defense attorney David Balsh must have thought. 447 00:27:22,520 --> 00:27:24,879 Speaker 1: This witness told the court that Christie had said she 448 00:27:24,960 --> 00:27:28,359 Speaker 1: had engaged in consensual sex with Marcus, but it claimed 449 00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:31,760 Speaker 1: rape afterward, simply to avoid the wrath of her violent, 450 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:36,480 Speaker 1: racist father. Now this bombshell might have been expected to 451 00:27:36,680 --> 00:27:39,439 Speaker 1: end the trial right there, or at least result in 452 00:27:39,480 --> 00:27:42,679 Speaker 1: a very swift verdict of not guilty. The defense had 453 00:27:42,680 --> 00:27:45,520 Speaker 1: presented a strong case that Christie's claim of rape was 454 00:27:45,560 --> 00:27:49,240 Speaker 1: not really her own, that she was in effect pressured 455 00:27:49,320 --> 00:27:53,480 Speaker 1: into making the allegations. But the prosecution, on the other hand, 456 00:27:53,800 --> 00:27:56,560 Speaker 1: had done a solid job depicting Marcus as a violent 457 00:27:56,680 --> 00:28:00,600 Speaker 1: rapist with a history of sexual offenses. The jury was 458 00:28:00,600 --> 00:28:03,600 Speaker 1: made up of nine white jurors and three black jurors. 459 00:28:04,280 --> 00:28:07,399 Speaker 1: After closing arguments from the defense and the prosecution that 460 00:28:07,480 --> 00:28:11,479 Speaker 1: depicted the same event in completely different ways, the members 461 00:28:11,480 --> 00:28:16,240 Speaker 1: of the jury began their difficult deliberations. Marcus Dixon's fate 462 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:19,199 Speaker 1: hung in the balance. The jury was deciding whether he 463 00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:22,080 Speaker 1: was a violent sex offender. There was a charge of 464 00:28:22,200 --> 00:28:26,959 Speaker 1: forcible rape, of aggravated child molestation, and of statutory rape. 465 00:28:27,040 --> 00:28:30,960 Speaker 1: The second two offenses make consent irrelevant. You remember what 466 00:28:31,000 --> 00:28:33,840 Speaker 1: I told you about the age of consent right, Marcus 467 00:28:33,920 --> 00:28:36,640 Speaker 1: was considered an adult in the state of Georgia. He 468 00:28:36,720 --> 00:28:40,800 Speaker 1: was eighteen years old. Christie was only fifteen, under the 469 00:28:40,840 --> 00:28:44,200 Speaker 1: age of sixteen, below the age of consent in the 470 00:28:44,200 --> 00:28:47,800 Speaker 1: State of Georgia, so under state law it didn't matter 471 00:28:47,800 --> 00:28:51,080 Speaker 1: whether Christie consented. The pair engaging in any sort of 472 00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:53,960 Speaker 1: sexual activity would be viewed as a crime committed by 473 00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:58,280 Speaker 1: Marcus unless the Romeo and Juliette laws offered up leniency. 474 00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:02,520 Speaker 1: But forcible rape, well, that will be a far different conviction. 475 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:06,320 Speaker 1: To convict Marcus Dixon of rape, the jury had to 476 00:29:06,360 --> 00:29:10,560 Speaker 1: believe beyond a reasonable doubt that Christy Brown did not consent. 477 00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:15,720 Speaker 1: On May fourteenth, two thousand and three, the hushed anticipation 478 00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:19,440 Speaker 1: in the courtroom was palpable, echoing the collective heartbeat of 479 00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:24,480 Speaker 1: a town and country divided. Marcus Dixon, once the local 480 00:29:24,520 --> 00:29:28,800 Speaker 1: sports hero destined for national greatness, now stood on the 481 00:29:28,800 --> 00:29:33,000 Speaker 1: precipice of a life altering moment. The jury had reached 482 00:29:33,040 --> 00:29:47,280 Speaker 1: a decision. This, my friends, is a cliffhanger, and I'm 483 00:29:47,280 --> 00:29:48,520 Speaker 1: not talking about the cocktail. 484 00:29:48,520 --> 00:29:48,840 Speaker 2: People. 485 00:29:49,480 --> 00:29:51,080 Speaker 1: Come thirst to you and enjoin me for the next 486 00:29:51,120 --> 00:29:54,640 Speaker 1: episode of Playing Dirty. When we learned Marcus Dixon's fate 487 00:29:55,040 --> 00:30:09,120 Speaker 1: and sift through the scandal's second round. Playing Dirty Sports 488 00:30:09,120 --> 00:30:13,600 Speaker 1: Scandals is a production of Dan Patrick Productions, Never Ever Productions, 489 00:30:13,720 --> 00:30:18,080 Speaker 1: and Workhouse Media from executive producers Dan Patrick, Paul Anderson, 490 00:30:18,400 --> 00:30:22,960 Speaker 1: Nick Panella, Maya Glickman, and Jennifer Clary. Hosted by Jay Harris, 491 00:30:23,360 --> 00:30:27,240 Speaker 1: Written and produced by Jen Brown, Francie Haiks, Maya Glickman, 492 00:30:27,440 --> 00:30:29,000 Speaker 1: and Jennifer Clarey.